It’s hard to watch what happened to Dak Prescott and not just feel bad for the guy. But just as the Dallas Cowboys had to re-focus and play the game on the field, fantasy general managers can’t dwell and must pivot as well. With Prescott being one of the top 4 QBs in fantasy football, it’s no surprise that managers rostered Prescott in 97% of leagues on FleaFlicker. This means at least one GM is looking for a new QB this week in just about every fantasy football league out there. Let’s take a look at who is available on the waiver wire for fantasy managers who need a Dak replacement.
[sv slug=”fantasy”]
Fantasy Waiver Wire Replacements for Dak Prescott
Derek Carr, Las Vegas Raiders: Rostered in 48% of leagues
Derek Carr has been a pleasant revelation as of late. So I don’t know why I keep him on the bench for Matt Ryan, who has been the exact opposite, in the Scott Fish Bowl. But that’s about to change for me, and Dak Prescott managers should consider rostering him as well.
Carr just handed the Kansas City Chiefs their first loss of the season, throwing 347 yards and three touchdowns at Arrowhead in Week 5. With 95+ fantasy points on the season, he is the 12th quarterback overall in fantasy and has racked up 20+ points in three out of five weeks this year.
His Consistency Score (CS) of 9.92 before Week 5 was 10th among signal-callers and is apt to rise after an impressive performance this Sunday. Plus, with Henry Ruggs back in the mix, the Raiders have an explosive playmaker that they have desperately been missing.
It might be hard for the fantasy manager who lost Dak to lean on Carr right away as a waiver wire replacement, considering his upcoming Week 6 bye. But streaming someone based on matchups this next week while stashing Carr should pay dividends.
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Miami Dolphins: Rostered in 42% of leagues
It must be noted that Ryan Fitzpatrick could see the sideline this year if the Miami Dolphins want to find out what rookie Tua Tagovailoa is capable of. But for now, he is the starter and has been delivering the fantasy goods. For as long as he is on the field, he is someone you can consider picking up on this week’s fantasy waiver wire as a replacement for Dak.
On the season, Fitzpatrick’s 102.86 fantasy points going into Week 5 were good enough to make him the seventh overall quarterback in fantasy football, and his 20.6 fantasy points per game rank eighth. While his Week 1 debacle against New England has cratered his CS (5.13) in this young season, he has put up 20+ fantasy points in every outing since then. As a waiver replacement, Fitzpatrick shares with Dak a lot of the same ingredients needed for a strong fantasy season under center – decent passing weapons (Prescott’s are clearly better) and a defense that is incapable of stopping anyone.
Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers: Rostered in 58% of leagues
Slightly less available than the other replacement options mentioned, Justin Herbert is still worth checking your waiver wire if you lost Dak. Herbert has made the Los Angeles Chargers a lot more fun than their initial Week 1 debut. As much as we were worried about the Chargers’ passing attack with Tyrod Taylor under center, Herbert has given us a reason to be optimistic.
I typically like four full games for a proper sample size to calculate CS, but going into Week 4, Herbert’s CS would have been 10.02, which would make him the 10th ranked QB. He is also sporting a +7% FPD, where he is the 17th QB in that metric. Not stellar, but it is a good sign that he is already posting a positive number in that regard. What might be even more impressive, for us fantasy managers, is that he is averaging 20 fantasy points per game. That ranks 10th at this point in the season.
I included Herbert because he can become much more available soon and be a solid waiver pickup in two weeks. Similar to Carr, Herbert has a Week 6 bye, so fantasy managers sans Dak will have to find a band-aid for this upcoming week. But picking up Herbert after he gets dropped is a savvy long term replacement move.
This is especially true with the Jacksonville Jaguars, eighth highest Defensive Points Allowed Consistency (D-PAC) vs. QB, and then the Denver Broncos, fourth-highest D-PAC vs. QB, after their bye.
Andy Dalton, Dallas Cowboys: Rostered in 12% of leagues
This is the low-hanging fantasy fruit, of course, but being thrust into the replacement role for Dak this week, Andy Dalton threw for 111 yards on only 11 attempts and is clearly available on nearly every fantasy waiver wire as a replacement for Dak.
Dalton has been the definition of middling fantasy football quarterback during his time in Cincinnati. But stepping into the starting quarterback for Dallas has immediate upside. This Cowboys defense just surrendered 34 points to the hapless New York Giants. Thirty-four points! Dalton is going to need to throw, regardless of what the game plan supposedly starts out as. Not to mention, he has an improved set of weapons around him.
No offense to A.J. Green, but while Dalton was a Bengal, it was pretty much only Green. Now Dalton gets to sling passes to Ezekiel Elliot, Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup, and CeeDee Lamb.
Let’s not forget the Cowboys are in the NFC East, the undisputed worst division in football. Their upcoming schedule includes the Arizona Cardinals, Washington Football team, and then the Philadelphia Eagles. That’s a delightful schedule for Dalton to ease into leading this football team.